Thread Starter
#1
Some background info: I was driving a Punto 90hp before. The car was just 1.5 years old when I had to sell it off as I was going to UK for higher studies. Now that I am back to Mumbai, I was looking for a new car. Budget was set at 5 Lacs and then increased to 6.5 Lacs.
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How did the transition happen from a new car to a used car?
1) Due to increasing traffic congestion in Mumbai, I would prefer a good A/T over a manual now.
3) My family is a bunch of tall people and we are not really suited for hatchbacks. Also, most hatches (except the Polo GT TSi) does not have a good A/T.
4) So, we needed a big and spacious car with a good A/T. I personally wanted the car to be good looking and powerful and also with the necessary features like Automatic HVAC, electric mirrors and the likes.
Now, a new car at the said budget wont meet the above requirements. Hence, I suggested that we look in the used car market for a sparingly used car with a poor resale value. That ways, we get to choose a car which is in the 10-15 Lac range and hence would be decently spacious, powerful and also come with a good A/T.
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Contenders:
Initially, we considered a new/used i10 A/T, but it was soon dismissed due to shortage of space. Cars like Dzire A/T was also rejected by me as I dont like the way it looks and it is not spacious either.
The final contenders were -
1) Used Laura A/T: Due to known issues with the DSG gearbox, I personally wanted to avoid the Laura. Also, maintenance costs of Skodas are known to be huge. And being a diesel, in our budget, we were getting 2006-2007 cars driven for more than 60k kms.
2) Used Cruze A/T: Again, being a diesel, this car was overpriced. This car ticked all the right boxes except the asking price.
3) Used Verna A/T: This car was feature loaded. We never wanted a petrol Hyundai, and the diesel again was overpriced. We were only looking at the fluidic Verna and not the old one.
4) VW Vento A/T: Somehow I feel this car is not awe inspiring. Even the interiors are plane jane and having worked in VW for some time, I knew that VW's A.S.S. is expensive.
5) Skoda Rapid A/T: Same reason as above, as its essentially the same car.
6) Honda City A/T: This car was perfect for our needs. My mom did not like the space in the rear seat. Infact, even I was uncomfortable in the driver's seat as the seat travel is too short. Even with the driver's seat fully pushed back, there was a lot of space left for the rear seat.
7) New Ford Ecosport A/T: This was the only *new* car we had in mind. Even though I like this car, I thought it is not ideal for my family. The car's seat height was a plus point but the rear seat was way too cramped for us. Took my mom and brother for a test drive, but after sitting in the display vehicle, they did not even wish to take a test drive... Space was the biggest constraint. Moreover, bookings for the A/T variant were closed.
8) Honda Civic A/T: After the City, the Civic was my next best choice. Since our running is very low, a petrol A/T car was not much of a bother. The pros and cons of the Civic as noticed by me in the various test drives are:
Pros:
a) Smart looking exteriors coupled with futuristic interiors
b) Very spacious cabin
c) Powerful and free revving A/T 1.8 iVTEC engine
d) All necessary safety features like ABS, Airbags and EBD
e) Other essential features like Alloys, Automatic HVAC and electric mirrors
Cons:
a) Low ground clearance
b) Low set seats not ideal for elderly people
I thought that the resale value of a Automatic petrol car would be pathetic and hence I would get a nice Civic for dirt cheap. Not very true. There is a fair demand for well maintained and sparingly used Civic A/T in the used car market. I was very clear that I needed a Civic Automatic only, since I have heard enough about the poor low end response of the i-Vtec engine in the Civic. I am used to the torque of diesels and driving a petrol with poor torque (comparatively) and poor low end response coupled with a manual transmission would be a chore in Mumbai city traffic. Hence, A/T was compulsory. And if its A/T, I feel there is no better choice than the Civic. Also, I preferred colours like white and black. So, I could easily narrow down on specific cars which I wanted to see and which I can choose to ignore. The downside was there were very few cars in the used car market which met the above conditions!
I saw a couple of Civics and test drove them -
# A grey Dec 2009 Civic with 40000 on the odo. Asking price 6.75 Lacs. It has a few scratches here and there. The suspension was not great. Gearshift was very jerky, the A/T was not in great shape. Some of the interior panels were scuffed.
# A white Oct 2010 Civic with 27000 on the odo. Asking price 7.8 Lacs. The car was in a great condition except for a scratch in the left rear fender and a broken driver's ORVM. Mechanically, the car was perfect. We were almost agreed to 7.5 Lacs and were about to pay the token amount but someone else paid the token before us!
# A black Aug 2010 Civic with 42000 on the odo. Asking price 7.5 Lacs. The car had 16" alloys and sport tyres. It was in a terrible condition with a lot of deep scratches. The interiors were horrible with all door pads scuffed and faded. The driver's ORVM was broken and the A/T was horrible. The car was outright rejected.
# Finally, we saw our car. After just about 1 week of searching, on 14th September. A white November 2010 Civic V A/T which has run only 28000 kms, maintained in pristine condition. I found no scratches in the car and the exteriors are fault free. On the inside, the only area of concern was a loose seat belt retractor and a missing cigarette lighter cover! And yes, a worn steering wheel, maybe because of using a steering wheel cover by the previous owner. Mechanically, the car was perfect. The interiors were clean and well kept with no visible scratches. Even the leather seats looked and felt great. No fading of any sorts on the switches or any panels.
The dealer had the entire service history of the car. It was maintained and serviced at regular intervals from a single Honda authorized dealer. I also checked for any accident repairs and there is none. Also, there have been no accident claims as the insurance has a No claim bonus on it.
After some negotiations, I agreed to pay 7.75 Lacs for the car. I guess the price should have been lesser, I would have willingly paid 7.5 for it, but the dealer refused to budge below 7.75 and I did not want to lose such a pristine car for Rs. 25000!
In the end, I feel its a bargain. I am getting a well kept car with very few kms on the odo and which is about 3 years old, in about 52% of its on road price. I can utilize the saved 48% for fuel and maintenance expenses for as long as I keep it, considering the lesser usage of this car. Frankly, I have seen people searching for their "ideal" car for months. I cant do that as I simply do not have that patience!
The last time we bought a sedan was the Opel Astra Club back in 2001. Since then, we have always been on UVs, with the exception of the Fiat Punto. Lets see how the ownership experience of sedan turns up now, after 12 years...
*********************************************
How did the transition happen from a new car to a used car?
1) Due to increasing traffic congestion in Mumbai, I would prefer a good A/T over a manual now.
3) My family is a bunch of tall people and we are not really suited for hatchbacks. Also, most hatches (except the Polo GT TSi) does not have a good A/T.
4) So, we needed a big and spacious car with a good A/T. I personally wanted the car to be good looking and powerful and also with the necessary features like Automatic HVAC, electric mirrors and the likes.
Now, a new car at the said budget wont meet the above requirements. Hence, I suggested that we look in the used car market for a sparingly used car with a poor resale value. That ways, we get to choose a car which is in the 10-15 Lac range and hence would be decently spacious, powerful and also come with a good A/T.
*********************************************
Contenders:
Initially, we considered a new/used i10 A/T, but it was soon dismissed due to shortage of space. Cars like Dzire A/T was also rejected by me as I dont like the way it looks and it is not spacious either.
The final contenders were -
1) Used Laura A/T: Due to known issues with the DSG gearbox, I personally wanted to avoid the Laura. Also, maintenance costs of Skodas are known to be huge. And being a diesel, in our budget, we were getting 2006-2007 cars driven for more than 60k kms.
2) Used Cruze A/T: Again, being a diesel, this car was overpriced. This car ticked all the right boxes except the asking price.
3) Used Verna A/T: This car was feature loaded. We never wanted a petrol Hyundai, and the diesel again was overpriced. We were only looking at the fluidic Verna and not the old one.
4) VW Vento A/T: Somehow I feel this car is not awe inspiring. Even the interiors are plane jane and having worked in VW for some time, I knew that VW's A.S.S. is expensive.
5) Skoda Rapid A/T: Same reason as above, as its essentially the same car.
6) Honda City A/T: This car was perfect for our needs. My mom did not like the space in the rear seat. Infact, even I was uncomfortable in the driver's seat as the seat travel is too short. Even with the driver's seat fully pushed back, there was a lot of space left for the rear seat.
7) New Ford Ecosport A/T: This was the only *new* car we had in mind. Even though I like this car, I thought it is not ideal for my family. The car's seat height was a plus point but the rear seat was way too cramped for us. Took my mom and brother for a test drive, but after sitting in the display vehicle, they did not even wish to take a test drive... Space was the biggest constraint. Moreover, bookings for the A/T variant were closed.
8) Honda Civic A/T: After the City, the Civic was my next best choice. Since our running is very low, a petrol A/T car was not much of a bother. The pros and cons of the Civic as noticed by me in the various test drives are:
Pros:
a) Smart looking exteriors coupled with futuristic interiors
b) Very spacious cabin
c) Powerful and free revving A/T 1.8 iVTEC engine
d) All necessary safety features like ABS, Airbags and EBD
e) Other essential features like Alloys, Automatic HVAC and electric mirrors
Cons:
a) Low ground clearance
b) Low set seats not ideal for elderly people
I thought that the resale value of a Automatic petrol car would be pathetic and hence I would get a nice Civic for dirt cheap. Not very true. There is a fair demand for well maintained and sparingly used Civic A/T in the used car market. I was very clear that I needed a Civic Automatic only, since I have heard enough about the poor low end response of the i-Vtec engine in the Civic. I am used to the torque of diesels and driving a petrol with poor torque (comparatively) and poor low end response coupled with a manual transmission would be a chore in Mumbai city traffic. Hence, A/T was compulsory. And if its A/T, I feel there is no better choice than the Civic. Also, I preferred colours like white and black. So, I could easily narrow down on specific cars which I wanted to see and which I can choose to ignore. The downside was there were very few cars in the used car market which met the above conditions!
I saw a couple of Civics and test drove them -
# A grey Dec 2009 Civic with 40000 on the odo. Asking price 6.75 Lacs. It has a few scratches here and there. The suspension was not great. Gearshift was very jerky, the A/T was not in great shape. Some of the interior panels were scuffed.
# A white Oct 2010 Civic with 27000 on the odo. Asking price 7.8 Lacs. The car was in a great condition except for a scratch in the left rear fender and a broken driver's ORVM. Mechanically, the car was perfect. We were almost agreed to 7.5 Lacs and were about to pay the token amount but someone else paid the token before us!
# A black Aug 2010 Civic with 42000 on the odo. Asking price 7.5 Lacs. The car had 16" alloys and sport tyres. It was in a terrible condition with a lot of deep scratches. The interiors were horrible with all door pads scuffed and faded. The driver's ORVM was broken and the A/T was horrible. The car was outright rejected.
# Finally, we saw our car. After just about 1 week of searching, on 14th September. A white November 2010 Civic V A/T which has run only 28000 kms, maintained in pristine condition. I found no scratches in the car and the exteriors are fault free. On the inside, the only area of concern was a loose seat belt retractor and a missing cigarette lighter cover! And yes, a worn steering wheel, maybe because of using a steering wheel cover by the previous owner. Mechanically, the car was perfect. The interiors were clean and well kept with no visible scratches. Even the leather seats looked and felt great. No fading of any sorts on the switches or any panels.
The dealer had the entire service history of the car. It was maintained and serviced at regular intervals from a single Honda authorized dealer. I also checked for any accident repairs and there is none. Also, there have been no accident claims as the insurance has a No claim bonus on it.
After some negotiations, I agreed to pay 7.75 Lacs for the car. I guess the price should have been lesser, I would have willingly paid 7.5 for it, but the dealer refused to budge below 7.75 and I did not want to lose such a pristine car for Rs. 25000!
In the end, I feel its a bargain. I am getting a well kept car with very few kms on the odo and which is about 3 years old, in about 52% of its on road price. I can utilize the saved 48% for fuel and maintenance expenses for as long as I keep it, considering the lesser usage of this car. Frankly, I have seen people searching for their "ideal" car for months. I cant do that as I simply do not have that patience!
The last time we bought a sedan was the Opel Astra Club back in 2001. Since then, we have always been on UVs, with the exception of the Fiat Punto. Lets see how the ownership experience of sedan turns up now, after 12 years...
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